2012 Auto Expo – Ashok Leyland launch Jan Bus
Ashok Leyland unveiled two new LCVs at the Auto Expo 2012. They are the Ashok Leyland Stile and Partner. Kamal Nath, the union minister of urban development also launched Jan Bus, the world's first single step, front engine, fully flat floor bus.
Unveiling the bus, Kamal Nath said, "A lots of the transport problems faced by urban India are attributable to the proliferation of private vehicle usage. People, however, will convert to public modes of transport only if they have good, comfortable, affordable and efficient options. With the Jan Bus, I am confident that Ashok Leyland has gone a long way towards providing a very attractive transport solution both for the passenger as well as the operator."
The Jan Bus gets air suspension, driver friendly assists and infotainment system to keep the passengers entertained. The Jan Bus gets a 235PS turbo-charged BS4 compliant CNG MPFI engine and an automated manual transmission.
The Stile has been specially developed to address various applications like people carriers in the urban and rural areas, hotel shuttles, taxi services, ambulances, panel vans, courier services, inter-city and intra-city travel. It has a monocoque body construction with sliding doors on both the sides. Ashok Leyland will launch it in both diesel and CNG versions, with a choice of two and four rows of seating.
The Partner is a 6 tonne LCV platform that was launched globally by Nissan Motor Company recently. It gets a 121PS ZD30-DDTI Common Rail Diesel (BS4-compliant) engine. The Partner will be useful for applications like tippers and aluminium containers.
The company also showed the CNG variant of the Dost LCV. While the Stile and Partner platforms are scheduled for launch in mid of calendar year 2013, the Dost CNG will be in the market later this year.
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